Organization(s)
FBC
Publication Date
Description
A supplement to the 2012 Florida Building Code on energy efficiency and conservation.
This library contains research reports produced by the Building America program and other building science resources used to support this Solution Center. The materials cover both new construction and existing homes. Use the search box and/or the filters to explore hundreds of residential building resources. Access to some references not produced by Building America may require purchase from the publisher. Documents are listed alphabetically. While we continually update our database, links may have changed since posting. Please contact our webmaster if you find broken links.
Showing results 1 - 50 of 59
Organization(s)
Alliance for Residential Building Innovation,
ARBI,
National Renewable Energy Laboratory,
NREL,
Davis Energy Group
Publication Date
Description
Research study estimating potential energy savings relative to conventional ducted air distribution, and identifying equipment requirements, costs, and barriers.
Organization(s)
Integrated Building and Construction Solutions,
IBACOS
Publication Date
Description
Report describing an air distribution system composed of a series of uniformly-sized ducts that terminate in rooms throughout the home and return to a central manifold, similar in fashion to a “home-run” cross-linked polyethylene plumbing system.
Organization(s)
ACCA
Publication Date
Description
Technical manual from ACCA outlining correct methods for zoning of residential HVAC systems.
Organization(s)
NREL,
DOE
Publication Date
Description
Fact sheet describing best strategies to bring ductwork on single-story homes with a slab-on-grade foundation in hot, dry climates into the conditioned envelope of the home intending to highlight the pros and cons of multiple ductwork integration strategies, including traditional duct systems in...
Organization(s)
ADC
Publication Date
Description
Standard for use and reference by designers, architects, engineers, contractors, installers and users for evaluating, selecting, specifying and properly installing flexible duct in heating and air conditioning systems.
Organization(s)
Integrated Building and Construction Solutions,
IBACOS,
National Renewable Energy Laboratory,
NREL
Publication Date
Description
Document providing guideance and considerations for duct design in an energy efficient house.
Organization(s)
Advanced Residential Integrated Energy Solutions,
ARIES,
Levy Partnership,
National Renewable Energy Laboratory,
NREL,
U.S. Department of Energy,
DOE
Publication Date
Description
Report describing two retrofit duct sealing techniques - manually-applied sealants and injecting a spray sealant, that were implemented in several low-rise multi-unit buildings in North Carolina.
Organization(s)
Colorado State University,
U.S. Department of Agriculture,
USDA
Publication Date
Description
Fact sheet describing air-sealing concerns and remedies, including HRV/ERV installation, caulking, spray foam, and weatherstrip installation.
Organization(s)
NREL
Publication Date
Description
Brochure intended to provide readers with a working knowledge of residential heating and cooling duct systems.
Organization(s)
CARB,
NREL,
SWA
Publication Date
Description
Report describing the recommended best practices to achieve energy savings without compromising health or safety.
Organization(s)
National Renewable Energy Laboratory,
NREL,
U.S. Department of Energy,
DOE
Publication Date
Description
Document describing the Building America research benchmark for the residential building program.
Organization(s)
U.S. Department of Energy,
DOE,
Northwest Energy Efficiency Alliance,
NEEA
Publication Date
Description
Training manual on how to locate ducts within conditioned space and compact design.
Chamberlain Heights Redevelopment: A Large Scale, Cold Climate Study of Affordable Housing Retrofits
Organization(s)
California Air Resources Board,
CARB,
Steven Winter Associates,
SWA,
National Renewable Energy Laboratory,
NREL
Publication Date
Description
Report about City of Meriden Housing Authority's (MHA) collaboration with Jonathon Rose Companies to complete a gut renovation of 126 residential units in the Chamberlain Heights retrofit project.
Organization(s)
NAIMA
Publication Date
Description
Manual showing duct cleaning contractors how to identify the different types of insulated air ducts, how to open each type for access by cleaning equipment and personnel, how to close and seal openings after cleaning.
Organization(s)
Integrated Building and Construction Solutions,
IBACOS,
U.S. Department of Energy,
DOE
Publication Date
Description
Report summarizing one year of monitoring and analysis of the effectiveness of a space conditioning system at maintaining temperature and relative humidity levels in a test home, as well as room-to-room differences and the actual measured energy consumption by the space conditioning system.
Organization(s)
Florida Solar Energy Center,
FSEC,
U.S. Department of Energy,
DOE,
Building America Partnership for Improved Residential Construction,
BA-PIRC
Publication Date
Description
Report on experiments comparing the cooling and heating seasonal and peak demand performance of different variable-capacity air conditioning and heat pump units.
Organization(s)
NAIMA
Publication Date
Description
Information sheet with HVAC duct insulation, testing, maintenance and performance information.
Organization(s)
Integrated Building and Construction Solutions,
IBACOS,
U.S. Department of Energy,
DOE
Publication Date
Description
Report identifying two barriers that limit the ability of builders to explore opportunities for higher levels of energy efficiency in housing: the use of duct system materials that inherently achieve airtightness and are right-sized for low-load houses, and, the ability to air seal fire separation...
Organization(s)
Florida Solar Energy Center,
FSEC
Publication Date
Description
Document comparing simulation results from a modified version of the EnergyGauge program to include various HVAC runtime strategies.
Organization(s)
Building America Partnership for Improved Residential Construction,
BA-PIRC,
Florida Solar Energy Center,
FSEC
Publication Date
Description
Research study describing experiments run in an unoccupied 1600 square foot house to evaluate the delivered performance as well as the relative performance of a SEER 21 variable capacity heat pump versus a SEER 13 heat pump.
Organization(s)
Partnership for Advanced Residential Retrofit,
PARR,
National Renewable Energy Laboratory,
NREL,
Gas Technology Institute,
GTI Energy,
Midwest Energy Efficiency Alliance,
MEEA,
CNT Energy,
Elevate Energy,
Future Energy Enterprises,
U.S. Department of Energy,
DOE
Publication Date
Description
Document reviewing four cold-climate northern Illinois energy efficiency retrofit programs to identify practices, tools, and approaches to streamline and reduce costs of comprehensive retrofits, and to improve the consistency of audit and retrofit delivery practices across different programs.
Organization(s)
Integrated Building and Construction Solutions,
IBACOS,
National Renewable Energy Laboratory,
NREL,
U.S. Department of Energy,
DOE
Publication Date
Description
Expert meeting held to discuss simplified space conditioning systems in low load homes, including the relationship between advanced thermal enclosures, space conditioning systems and comfort.
Organization(s)
Johns Manville
Publication Date
Description
Information sheet providing detail about hand fabrication of a one-piece straight duct from a 48" x 120" x 1" thick (1.22 m x 3.05 m x 25 mm) sheet where the total inside duct dimensions equals 112" (2.84 m) or less.
Organization(s)
ADC
Publication Date
Description
Standard providing a comprehensive approach to evaluating, selecting, specifying and installing flexible duct in HVAC systems.
Organization(s)
ADC
Publication Date
Description
Presentation about proper installation of flexible ducts.
Organization(s)
Pacific Northwest National Laboratory,
PNNL,
Oak Ridge National Laboratory,
ORNL,
U.S. Department of Energy,
DOE
Publication Date
Description
Report providing information about energy-efficient heating, ventilation, and cooling (HVAC) equipment options to help homeowners cut their energy use, reduce their carbon footprint, and increase their homes comfort, health, and safety.
Organization(s)
ICC
Publication Date
Description
Standards criteria supporting ICC HVAC duct support standards.
Organization(s)
Advanced Residential Integrated Energy Solutions,
ARIES,
Levy Partnership
Publication Date
Description
Report evaluating the relative effectiveness of various control and distribution strategies to improve hydronic space heating performance in existing low-rise multifamily buildings
Organization(s)
FSEC
Publication Date
Description
Report summarizing approaches to addressing duct leakage in hot humid climates.
Organization(s)
Florida Solar Energy Center,
FSEC
Publication Date
Description
Report describing as-found interior platform return plenums, the magnitude of their contribution to the total amount of duct leakage, and techniques and results of retrofits executed by the HVAC trade during equipment replacement.
Organization(s)
Building Science Corporation,
BSC,
U.S. Department of Energy,
DOE
Publication Date
Description
Report on the long-term performance of mini-split heat pumps.
Organization(s)
Florida Solar Energy Center,
FSEC,
Florida Home Energy and Resources Organization,
Florida HERO,
Energy Smart Home Plans,
Pacific Northwest National Laboratory,
PNNL
Publication Date
Description
Document presenting a cost effective method that was used by four builders in the Gainesville, FL area to construct interior ducts in over a dozen site built homes.
Organization(s)
Integrated Building and Construction Solutions,
IBACOS
Publication Date
Description
Report providing guidance on how to implement a compact duct system inside a plenum truss bulkhead of a one-story, slab-on-grade home.
Organization(s)
Consortium for Advanced Residential Buildings,
CARB,
Steven Winter Associates,
SWA
Publication Date
Description
Document covering the technical aspects of buried and insulated ducts (BEDs), as well as the advantages, disadvantages, and risks of BEDs compared to alternative strategies.
Organization(s)
Consortium for Advanced Residential Buildings,
CARB,
National Renewable Energy Laboratory,
NREL,
Steven Winter Associates,
SWA
Publication Date
Description
Report describing the sealing and insulating of HVAC duct systems in existing homes.
Organization(s)
Building America Partnership for Improved Residential Construction,
BA-PIRC,
National Renewable Energy Laboratory,
NREL,
Florida Solar Energy Center,
FSEC,
U.S. Department of Energy,
DOE
Publication Date
Description
Document illustrating guidelines for efficient installation of interior duct systems in new housing.
Organization(s)
Building America Partnership for Improved Residential Construction,
BA-PIRC,
Florida Solar Energy Center,
FSEC,
U.S. Department of Energy,
DOE
Publication Date
Description
Research study analyzing measured energy savings from a moderate retrofit by comparing post-retrofit performance with measured pre-retrofit monitored data.
Organization(s)
ASHRAE,
ANSI
Publication Date
Description
Standard that prescribes a testing method to determine the efficiency of space heating and/or cooling thermal distribution systems under seasonal and design conditions. This version of the standard was published in the year 2014, and is available for preview and purchase at the reference link. The...
Organization(s)
WSU Extension Energy Program,
Washington State Department of Community Trade and Economic Development
Publication Date
Description
Conference paper making the case that moving ducts to conditioned space saves energy, is practical for production builders (when accompanied by careful pre-planning), and creates significant andmarketable energy savings for homebuyers.
Organization(s)
EPA
Publication Date
Description
This report is designed to meet ASHRAE 62.2-2010/2013 and ANSI/ACCA’s 5 QI-2015 protocol, thereby improving the performance of HVAC equipment in new homes when compared to homes built to minimum code.
Organization(s)
National Renewable Energy Laboratory,
NREL,
U.S. Department of Energy,
DOE
Publication Date
Description
Document about development of recommendations to help residential HVAC designers select optimal supply inlet size and system operating conditions to maintain good thermal comfort in low heating and cooling load homes.
Organization(s)
Consortium for Advanced Residential Buildings,
CARB,
Steven Winter Associates,
SWA,
National Renewable Energy Laboratory,
NREL
Publication Date
Description
Research study using modeling to determine optimal combination(s) of components/pumps, high efficiency heat sources, plumbing configurations and controls that result in the highest overall efficiency for a hydronic system.
Organization(s)
Consortium for Advanced Residential Buildings,
CARB,
Steven Winter Associates,
SWA,
U.S. Department of Energy,
DOE
Publication Date
Description
Report including an overview of the buried duct research and information the retrofit methodology used to install and test the three existing duct systems, including short- and long-term data collection.
Organization(s)
Florida Solar Energy Center,
FSEC,
Calcs Plus
Publication Date
Description
Document presenting results from testing prototype HVAC duct system designs that would locate the entire length of duct work within the air and thermal barriers of the building envelope. These include one that incorporated a high-side supply register, one that utilized a single soffit located within...
Organization(s)
DOE
Publication Date
Description
Presentation providing information about correctly installing ductwork in new and existing homes.
Organization(s)
TRC Energy Services
Publication Date
Description
Report proposes high performance duct measures for inclusion in California Title 24 building energy efficiency standards for 2016.
Organization(s)
Building Science Corporation,
BSC
Publication Date
Description
Research study about a high performance retrofit of an existing brick building (a former convent) into condominiums, all affordable housing.
Organization(s)
Consortium for Advanced Residential Buildings,
CARB,
National Renewable Energy Laboratory,
NREL,
Steven Winter Associates,
SWA
Publication Date
Description
Report describing procedures for increasing sensible efficiencies through increased flow rates across the air handling unit and increased indoor coil sizes.
Organization(s)
Consortium for Advanced Residential Buildings,
CARB,
Steven Winter Associates,
SWA
Publication Date
Description
Report about cost effective energy-efficient upgrades that can be implemented in the hot, dry Southwest climate.